Method and means for connecting plural circuits



Aug- 6, 1935- J. E. LONG Zl@ METHOD AND MEANS FOR CONNECTINGPLURAL CIRCUITS Filed March 3l, 1950 7" um y j Figs/.3%

Patented Aug. 6, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE METHOD AND MEANS FOR CONNECTING PLURAL CIRCUITS John E. Long, Multnomah, Oreg.

Application March 31, 1930, Serial No. 440,461

9 Claims. (Cl. 177-345) My invention relates to a method and means Fig. 2 is a detail view of such connecting block;

for disconnecting a series of Wires, such for ex- Fig. 3 is a View similar to Fig. l, showing a ample as in a cable, and making them again in modication of a connecting block embodying my proper order and sequence. invention; 5 My invention is particularly directed to the in- Fig. i is a detailed view of such latter modicaii stallation of electric signs of the type illustrated tion; in the United States reissue patent issued to iny- Fig- 5 is a View SOmeWhai diaglammaialiy i1-l Self under date of December 6, 1927, which patlustrating the manner in which such connecting ent bears Reissue No. 16,809. block is adapted to be passed thru the bore ci Electric signs of this character are frequently a conduit; and ll) placed in positions in which it is not desirable Fig. 5 iS EL flgmeli'dy dei/ail 0f CODSIUCOTL to place the control portion alongside of the sign In United States Patent No. 1,894,380, issued and in cases such as these the signs are operated Jallialy 1'?J 1933, t0 myself, entitled P31121 Unit by remote control. The underwriters and au- Sign, I have illustrated and described an electric thai-ities in various communities require that the sien to which my present invention is Specically 15 cable running from the controls tothe sign be directed, although the utility of my present inhoused within xed metal conduits. To comply VGHCH iS 110i/ iimiied i0 Such type 0f Sign. with such requirement, it has been necessary Suiice to say with respect to my present invenheretofore to make the connections between the tion, the board oi a sign of this characends of the Separate Wires and the terminals for ter is mounted upon a base a ci non-conducting the lights on such sign, after such sign has been material. Spaced at uniform intervals across the installed. Inasmuch as there are approximately face oi such display board are a series of electric forty-two lights to the running foot, it is obvious lights and the connections b therefor extend thru to see that making such connections in place is the S9-SS, aS iS ShOWD in FigS. 1 and 3- The a1'- a difficult and expensive job, and because of this rangement of such connections indicates the inan- 2,

factor the expense incurred limits the installaner in which such lights are arranged upon the tion of a sign of this character. face of such display board. Each of such connec- The Object of my invention is to provide a tions is connected by separate wire to a control method and means by which all of the connecse that each light can be actuated separately and tions to the display board can be made and the thus there are as many Wires COIIIDOSUg the ca- :io wires connecting the control element and the ble c as there are lghtS U0 be tii'ed. EaCi-l beard be disconnected intermediate the boa-M1 wire d is soldered or otherwise fastened to its and the control, such method and means being connection b which in turn is electrically conadapted to match up the plurality of circuits ected to a terminale.

quickly and easily, and with a minimum proba- The termina-is er each of the lights are ar- 35 bility of error. ranged in grouped sequence and are arranged A further object of my invention is to attain in rough a-inement alone one marginal edge of this object by the use of spaced terminals and the base. All of the lights in one vertical line connecting blocks, which latter are adapted to be are arranged in 011 gIOllD and the adjacent permanently fastened to the cable, which must groups are staggered relatively. In each group 40 be lead thru the conduit, such connecting the Wires connecting the lights composing such blocks being devised and arranged to permit their Vertical iin@ are COILUQCiJed in lledeiermirled Sepassing thru the bore of such conduit Without be- 011161109 SO that @Il irlSiSCiOl Of the lOUD 11013 ing disconnected. only indicates which vertical line is affected Further details of my invention and the inode them-by, but the 59511161108 plOVidBS 2m illdCfiiOn 45 of operation are hereinafter described with refof the partillial light iii Sllh lineerence to the accompanying drawing, in which; If the sign is one requiring a distant control,

Fig. 1 is a View of a display board embodying the underwriters and inspectors in certain disrny invention, looking at the back thereof and tricts require that the cable c be housed within showing the insulated base portion of such board a fixed metallic conduit f, which conduit en- 50 provided with spaced terminals and a cooperatcircles such cable from a point adjacent the sign ing connecting block and diagranirnatically ilto a point adjacent the CO-liJOi f', S0 'eS i210 minilustrates a control used with said sign, spaced mize the danger of iire occurring thru a shorttherefrom and with the electrical conductors circuit in any of the Wires in such cable. Such passing through a conduit; conduit is fastened in place before the sign is 55 installed and it is necessary that the cable c be led thru the bore of the conduit f before such cable can be fastened either to the control f or to the sign.

Inasmuch as it is necessary that each wire be fastened directly to the light to be controlled and that such wires be fastened in predetermined sequence,'it is evident that to select a proper ire from amass would be a difiicult task. To expedite the making of this selection and the connection of the selected wires in place and to eliminate'the necessity of soldering either one of the ends of such cable in place after the sign is installed, I sever such cable at a point adjacent the terminals e.

TheV end of cable c, which must be passed thru the conduit, is provided with a connecting block g, which comprises an elongated relatively thin and flexible strip of insulating material, such for example as so-called pressed board, carstock, or rubber.V Such connecting block is provided with a series of recesses or perforations h arranged longitudinally of the connecting block, suchrecesses or perforations being proportioned and grouped in size and in pattern to correspond with the terminals e upon the base a. rThe ends c' of the wires constituting the cable c are arranged in predetermined sequence similar to the manner that their opposite ends are arranged in the control box, which in turn is similar to` the manner in which the connections b are arranged on the insulated base of the display board. In the modification shown in Figs. 1 and2, the ends of each of the wires are bared of insulation and passed thru the perforations or recesses and fastened about the'intermediate portion of the wire and thus are secured tightly to the connecting block.

In the modification shown in Figs, 3, 4 and 6 the ends c or" the wires constituting the cable c are baredof insulation and extend diametrical;

1y across the recess or perforations h in the connecting block g. Such end of the wires extend downwardly thru a perforation z' in'such block and upwardly thru a perforation i' therein and the end of such wire is bent to lie iiat over the top of such block, as is shown most clearly in Fig. 6. The terminals e' shown in this modication are transversely slotted and are screwed tightly in'place in the base o. Thus the end c'oi` the wires is brought into electrical connection with the terminals c by being iitted tightly into the slotted portion of such terminals.

The recesses or perforations h in such con- Ynecting block are arranged so as to correspond in'size and spacing to the terminals and thus when the connecting block is arranged in alinement with the terminals, each perforation with 'its Wire fast therein will come into registration with its terminal when the connecting block is fastened in place. Electrical connection is thus made between the end of the wire and the terminal.

If it is desired to pass the cable with the connecting block fast thereto thru the conduit f, the

ble with the connecting block wrapped thereabout or extending along such cable from exceeding the size of the bore of the conduit, IY consider it preferable to arrange the connecting blocl; parallel to or to wind such connecting blockl spirally' about such cable, so that the overall diameter ci the whole is increased only by the thickness4 ofv one course of such connecting block. As llasbeen pointed out heretofore, my invention par@Y contain forty-two lights per panel. Thus thief forty-two wires leading to a given panel'sep-' arably are grouped and are withdrawn from the remainder of the cable at one point. All of said wires are joined to a common connecting block, which is adapted to be placed upon the terminals ofv the panel and thus each panel is adapted to be connected up to its control by a single operation. This is illustrated in Fig. 5, where all of the wires leading to one panel are shown con-j nected to a continuous, dat, flexible strip and the wires therefrom are joined to the cable at a point within the conduit f. The separate bundles of wire are indicated in said figure by the dotted circles at the ends of the cable and thus this would diagrammatcally illustrate that'f the grouped wires which are` removed are for' the panel sixth frornthe end. That is, there are' iive remaining bundles comprising the cable de-` noted by the rive dotted circles and the sixth bundle has been removed and connected to the connecting block.

It is unimportant how the connecting block is secured to the remainder of the cable when it ..7

is being passed thru the conduit, the connecting block being secured thereto by cord, tape, fric# tion tape, or any manner which will provide a secure but temporary connection. The specic numbers ofwires and their arrangement are cited l merely by way of illustration and are not to Vbe considered necessary limiting factors in practicing my invention.

I claim: Y

l. The method of passing a cable, which is composed of a plurality of electrical conductors insulated from each other, endwise thru a conduit having a iixed bore, which bore exceeds the cross-sectional area of such cable consisting in xing in spaced relation one end of each or said conductors to a separable flexible elongated iiat strip of electrically non-conducting material of lesser thickness than the play between said cable and said bore and arranging'said strip so as to lie ilatwise alongside of said cable soas to increase the overall cross-section of said cable to a lesser degree `than the play between the normal diameter of the cable andthe bore of the conduit. J

2. The method of passing a cable, which is composed of a plurality of Velectrical conductors insulated from each other, endwise thru a conduit having a fixed bore, which bore exceeds the cross-sectional area of suchcable consistingin fixing in spaced relation one end of each of said conductors to aV separable flexible elongated nat strip of electrically-non-conducting material of lesser thickness than the play lbetween said cable and said bore and winding such strip spirally latwise about said cable so asto increase the Thani' v f so v overall cross-section of said cable to a lesser degree than the play between the normal diamete of the cable and the bore of the conduit.

3. The method of passing a cable, which is composed of a plurality of electrical conductors insulated from each other, end'wise thr a conn duit having a xed bore, which bore er; eeds the cross-sectional area or such cable consisting in arranging one end of each of said conductors in spaced relation tr .isversely or an elongated separable flexible at strip of electrically non-conductive material of lesser thickness play between said cable and said bore fixing said ends as positioned to said strip and arranging said strip so as to lie natu/'isc alongside of said cable so as to increase the overall cross-section of said cable to a lesser degree than the play between the normal diameter of cable and the bore of the conduit.

li. The method of making wired connections from control mechanism to a varying electric display sign remote 'therefrom and having a conduit extending between the aforesaid parts which consists of connecting the wires of the sign to the relatively stationary part o a o uicl; detachable connector in a predetermined sequence, at a rcinote point connecting to a cooperating removable quick detachable connector the terminals of the wires providing a source of power from said control mechanism to the iirst said terminals and in a sequence corresponding to the first sequence, passing the last named connector and wires through said conduit to the first mentioned connector and then detachably connecting the two cooperating connectors.

5. The method of making wired connectior 'o remote electric sign having a conduit exten g to such sign, which method consists or co1 necting the wir s of the sign to the relatively stationary part oi a Quick detachable connector in a predetermined sequence, and at a point remote from said sign and at the other end of said conduit connecting to a cooperating removable flexible, iiat, quick detachable connector the terminals of the wires to be connected to said sign and in a sequence corresponding to the rst said sequence, arranging said connector flatwise or said wires and passing them through said conduit to the first mentioned connector and then detachably connecting the two cooperating connectors.

6. The method of making wired connections thru a plurality of electrical circuits to a remote electric sign provided with a conduit adapted to house the conductors dening said electric circuits, connecting said conductors to the relatively fixed part of a quick detachable connector in predetermined sequence at the end of said conduit adjacent said sign, and at the other end of said conduit connecting the conductors to a flat and flexible quick detachable connector which is thinner than the spacing between the conductors and said conduit, and in a sequence corresponding to the iirst said sequence, arranging said last named connector iiatwise of the conductors and passing them through said conduit and then detachably connecting the two cooperating connectors.

'7. The method or making wired connections thru a plurality oi electrical circuits thru a conduit adapted to house the conductors defining said electric circuits, connecting said conductors to the relatively fixed part oi a quick detachable connector in predetermined sequence at one end of said conduit, and at the other end of said conduit connecting the conductors to a 'flat and flexible quick detachable coimector and in a sequence corresponding to the first said sequence, arranging said last named connector natif/isc of the conductors and passing them through said conduit and then detachably connecting the two cooperating connectors.

8. The method o passing a cable composed of a plurality or electrical conductors, insulated from each other, endwise thru a conduit which lits about said cable and which conductors rnust be connected in predetermined order at the distant end or" said conduit to a series of terminals, consisting arranging the ends of the conductors in predetermined order, securing said ends transversely of elongated thin strip of non-conductinaterial, winding said strip about the cable, drawing the cable, thus prepared, thru the conand connecting the conductor ends to the terminals.

9. The method of passing a cable composed of a plurality oi electrical conductors, insulated from each other, endwise thru a conduit which 'lits about said cable and which conductors must be connected in predetermined order at the distant end oi said conduit to a series of terminals, consisting in arranging the ends of the conductors in predetermined order, securing said ends transversely of an elongated flexible strip of at eleotrically non-conductive material of lesser thickness than the play between the cable and the inner surface of the wall denine the bore of the conduit, arranging said strip so as to lie ilatwise alongs le of cable, fixing said strip ltemporaril f" in place, drawing the prepared cable thru the conduit, withdrawing said strip, arranging it in registration with said terminals and connecting said conductors to said terminals.

JOHN E. LONG. 

